In rehabilitating injuries, it is often desirable to move the injured body part through its available range of motion and to offer some resistance to such movement. For example, when rehabilitating an injured ankle, a physical therapist may hold the ankle of the injured person and ask the person to rotate or otherwise move the ankle in various directions as much as the person is able. The therapist will apply an appropriate amount of pressure to resist the movement corresponding to the condition of the person. As the rehabilitation progresses over time, the therapist will typically increase the resistance applied as the range of motion the person is able to achieve is increased. There is desired improvement in the availability of mechanical devices which enable a person to rehabilitate an injured ankle or other body part without the hands-on assistance of a physical therapist.
With regard to the foregoing, the present invention is directed to range of motion exercise devices. In a preferred embodiment, the devices include a body contact member configured for engageably receiving a body portion of a user and located adjacent a frame portion, and a plurality of tension members extending between the frame portion and the body contact member and configured to supply tension to yieldably resist motion of the body contact member relative to the frame portion during a range of motion exercise. The devices facilitate movement by a user through the range of motion that the user is able to achieve, while supplying an adjustable resistance to provide a desired amount of exercise.
In one aspect, the devices are configured for use with an ankle of a user. In another aspect, the devices are configured to exercise the neck of a user. As will be appreciated, however, the devices may be configured to exercise a wide variety of body parts including, but not limited to, arms, legs, and the abdomen.
Accordingly, in another embodiment, an exercise device is described which includes first and second exercise portions, each configured for exercising a body portion. The first and second exercise portions may be hingedly connected to facilitate shipping and storage.